18 August - work for blogs

There’s nothing ever to do with work on this blog whereas some others are all to do with the blogger’s work (policeman, medic, TEFL teacher in Venezuela, waiter and so on). Maybe if I still was working in an interesting industry – music – I’d have stories to tell relating to work, but no longer and it’s all a bit less interesting than 80’s 90’s, you can’t even spend money on lunches/dinners/ other artists’ records when you can’t swap them. I remember my excuse that in order to market your artist you have to listen/know who the others are out there etc and here’s my receipt from shopping spree at HMV. And that’s nothing compared to other people’s largesse with their expenses. Or it’s an age thing, I mean, my growing disinterest in my former field. Who can honestly say they fall in love with a new artist in their 40s? you just don’t fall that hard and if you did, you’d look like an idiot following the Kaiser Chiefs around every gig they do here and abroad. Effectively you have to fancy the band as well as the music they make. Plus Alex K -oops wrong band, Franz Ferdinand, could presumably look at you in horror, male or female that you are, and think there’s something unhinged in a person his parents’ age being a fan. So there you go. I’m not saying I’ll ever pay £100 to go and see the Rolling Stones, I’m not that old! but I can’t be down the Waterats often either. Anyway, that was top employment back then, it wasn’t work in fact. At least some days I was waking up eager to go to my office and see if we were no. 1 that week. This now is work . In one of those places where I only know the people who occupy the nearest 30 yard radius from my desk. The other acres may as well be a different company. Sometimes I walk to the North lifts (I’m by the South ones) and try to retain some of the names off the name tags I see on top of people’s computers but it’s hopeless. Not one sticks and on those occasions where a stray visitor comes out by my lifts and says he’s meeting so and so and where are they located? I have to pick up the phone and call the person to come and rescue their visitor as I don’t know where they are/who they are. There are 6 identical floors to mine in this building alone plus several other buildings occupying a chunk of the City but we could be Canary Wharf, downtown Hong Kong or LA for that matter. I’m near a window but the view is non descript.
So I would not use this place as a source of diary entries. I couldn’t even make fun of my co workers, they do their job, they mind their own business, they’re polite and helpful. What else do you want? Sure some are tossers (male, clearly), sure there’s no diversity, the only black person here is the daily shoe shine guy, and it’s a pressured environment, but not for me. The moment you step away from a career ladder and you’re no longer required to participate/initiate/follow up on meetings, it’s basically freedom, you do take your lunch hour and work to live rather than vice versa. Job satisfaction definitely starts to pale by this midpoint in life and if you don't have school fees to pay(yayee!!), voila' no pressure.